The present invention relates to apparatus for forming cookies into groups during packaging.
Referring to Swiss Pat. No. 374,325 issued Dec. 31st, 1963, the same discloses an apparatus for grouping cookies in which the cookies are disposed in a supply shaft and are gripped in groups at the lower end of the shaft by a first pusher and pushed to a collection plate. The collection plate is lowered in stages until a sufficient number of small groups are combined thereon to form a large group which is then ejected by means of a second pusher.
One drawback of this apparatus is that each small group of cookies handled by the first pusher is being pressed upon by the overlying cookies in the shaft so that great friction is produced between the uppermost cookie of each group and the lowermost cookie which remains in the shaft, and this can cause damage, particularly to delicate cookies.
It has been proposed to eliminate this drawback by an apparatus for grouping flat objects, e.g. cookies, which are disposed one on top of the other in the lower vertical end of a supply shaft and which are periodically held there by a clamping device and then released to be moved in a group by a pusher which can be moved back and forth and up and down simultaneously. The group of cookies is first lowered to a depositor element disposed at a distance below the outlet opening of the shaft whereupon they are pushed away from the depository element while the clamping device is retracted. If in such a device the pushing away of a group of objects in fact occurs only when the objects are being held in the shaft by the clamping device the group is not subjected to stress and no damage of the objects need be feared.
It has been found, however, that known devices of this type are not satisfactory in practice because the proper setting of the clamping device is too difficult, particularly in the case of high-output machinery and when wide dimensional tolerances are encountered, or particularly if there is a change in the format of the objects.